Call for art to grace V8 Pit Lane

Hamilton City Council is calling for artists to think "creative and dynamic" when it comes to the V8 Supercars pit lane. Expressions of Interest are now open for the Pit Lane Public Art project, a project which Council hopes will deliver to the city another piece of public art which adds value to the site and reflects Hamilton's unique identity.

Once it is installed the art piece will contribute significantly to the landscape mitigation activity in progress, specifically on the southern side of Mill Street where the V8 Supercars Pit Lane is situated. Development of a Landscape Mitigation Plan was a specific condition of the Resource Consent granted for the Hamilton 400 V8 Supercars streetrace. The Plan suggests the introduction of some form of relocatable art for the location, a recommendation welcomed by both the Council and the Waikato Tree Trust as a solution for the site.

Waikato Museum director Kate Vusoniwailala says, "already there are a number of quality public art pieces in the city – from the Earth Blanket at Hamilton Gardens to Riff Raff on Victoria Street. As a city we are increasingly recognising the value of these works as cultural assets which add to our heritage, our identity and our sense of place.

"We are pleased to partner with the Perry Foundation to make this project happen. Within their grant of $150,000; we want to encourage artists to think the unexpected and present some dynamic design concepts to us. This is another fantastic opportunity for an artist to be involved in making a positive impact on the space and add to Hamilton's public art heritage".

The call for Expressions of Interest is the first stage of the process to select a final design.

Following the 30 September deadline, all Expressions of Interest will be considered by Hamilton City Council's public art committee. A shortlist of artists will then be identified and invited to elaborate further on their design by submitting a more detailed proposal. The final successful concept will be selected from design proposals received in this second stage.

Hamilton Mayor Bob Simcock says that the call for Expressions of Interest is an exciting start to a project which is fully supported by a number of Council strategies.

"In the heart of New Zealand's largest export region, Hamilton is already an economic leader. Through the Economic Development Strategy we have made it a priority to progress that leadership further. Part of that is a city identity and sense of place we can prize. The Creativity and Identity Strategy also makes it clear that as a city we value the development of spaces and places that are meaningful and have depth – this project embodies those priorities and also fulfils an important aspect of our partnering with promoters to deliver the Hamilton 400, that is the mitigation of the effects on the landscape along pit lane".

Full details of the project are available on www.hamilton.co.nz/publicart and interested artists are asked to submit a design proposal and CV to Council by 4pm, 30 September 2008.